Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-03-26

couple of yards Of black silk folded so as
to quite hide the face. pass noiselessly IN
and out of the dark doorways while you
are conscious of peeping eyes turned upon
you from the little lower windows, which
give monastie appearance 10 so many OF
the houses Chinese water-carriers, who
ingeniously float bit of wood in their full
buckets to prevent the water from splash
ing, Jog along, dexterously avoiding the
sedan-chair or rumbling jinriksha. Buffalo
COWS are driven to the doors and MIXED
there, thus assuring the buyer that he IS
purchasing from the fountain head, meta
phorically only.
Soldiers, too, are met with; magnih-
Gently formed. large and elegant uniforms
have been furnished by the Government.
They have been made to fit Hercules, but,
unfortunately, the men who are put inside
these uniforms do not meet the demands
in length, breadth or rotundity, SO the eff
feet is very unsatisfactory, as it leaves too
much vacancy in the army. Few ladies
are seen upon the streets OF promenades, a
TACT accounted for by citizen who told me
that the upper class people are SO poor that
in large family when one female goes to
church the others must remain at home,
as she has to wear the dress. On the Praya
one notices red flag with white elephant
in the center. This is before the house OF
the Siamese consul. This Office is held
by a wealthy citizen of Macao, though
| am told that scarce one native of Siam
visits the place in a year, so the only rea-
son for this gentleman holding the position
is that it enables him to wear fine uni
+ ell IL, &c ~
a fancied reason but is actually the known
one.
CLIMBING MOUNT MILAN,
With glorious outlooks on every side, the
church of Our Lady of Pehna offers a
pleasant resting place. II was built IN
1922 repaired in 1887, and | wish might
add re-repaired in 1887, for it has fallen
into most lamentable decay. Long
steps, overthrow urns and pietur-
esque arches are all there for the
artist, while ferns find foothold between
the stones and mortar, and 9
clinging vine, called fcus, covers patches
yards square with its bright green leaf Be
fore the church is a large, roughly-hewn
cross, bearing in faded black the scroll
a.. n. r. j. while the gilded letters be-
fore the heather temples in the valley be-
low are bright. Yet, though these places
are in ruin now, the seed has been sown,
and we have faith that that scroll shall
some day read not Rex Judeorum,n but
" Rex Mundi."
THE GAME OF FAN-TAN.
Just as the visitor to Monte Carlo must
go to the gaming tables, SO must the visitor
to Macao go to the fan-tan. As IN duty
bound, after dinner l started out beneath
the soft, oil lights of the street lamps, past
policemen wearing hoods like pilgrims,
past Chinese watchmen with drum and
clapper, till l reached the gayly-lighted
house where game of fan-tan is licensed
(the Government obtains nearly all its
revenue from licensing these houses),
and which was frequented by Euro
peans. The place looked like q Chi
Eese restaurant in San Francisco, and
in the second-story room sat the
croupier behind counter. On the coun-
ter was a square of metal divided into four
parts, each numbered l, 2, 3. 4. Before
the eroupier is a pile of polished coins, with
hole in the center OF each-ealled cash
the croupier draws away some under a
brass bell no one knows how many. Now
the player puts his money upon any one
of the four spots he chooses, and the crou-
DlOl COOillo Jul l1S CsAS445
pointed bamboo rod, so that no conceal
ment is possible, four at time slowly till
either one, two, three or four pieces are left;
ifthe number left corresponds to the number
on the metal square where your money is
placed you win three times your risk, or if
it is any of the other three, you lose. Just
over the table or counter is square hole
in the ceiling with a railing around it in
the room above; it is here the ladies sit
and let down their money and draw up
their winnings in a bag. A dollar seems
to be the favorite stake, and men and
women are coming and going constantly
one Chinaman put down watch and chain
and
LOST IT WITHOUT FRowN.
Macao is favorite resort for the Hong
kong people in summer, when the ever
present cool breeze is very grateful Small
as Macao is. it has its smaller dependency
of Taipa, which is picturesquely situated on
a neighboring island, where the Snow-white
cathedral is always in view. l have
purposely described Macao in passionless
manner, for the place is so lovely in all its
respects. and was SO completely charmed
with all saw there, that l feared to use
the adiectives that formed themselves in my
mind. l must say in closing that never in
my life have seen loyelier sight than
the view of the city with its fortress
crowned hills and beautiful gardens, I'M
less it be Venice, as she rises from the sea,
in the delicate tinting of summer sunset.
Macao is dead, but beautiful in death, and
hope the same hand which raised the
daughter of Jairus will sometime give her
renewed life, when vesper and matin shall
again be heard in these deserted temples,
and the doors of Our Lady of Pehna be
open day and night.
CHARLES A. GUNNIsoN.